Something is wrong.
Rey is awoken abruptly by a sound from the outside. She lifts her eyelids and blinks a few times. The girl still feels dizzy from sleep. She passed out once the light started to peek from behind the shutters after waking up from another nightmare. It was the same one from the nights before.
There are an ocean and an island. The water's colour is deep blue, its surface being disturbed by wind, resulting in thousands of ripples. It spreads vastly, seemingly having no end and no beginning. The island is small. It has a lot of greenery among cliffs and cavities. Thick mist hangs over the area. Sometimes a low rumbling of a thunder echoes in the distance.
The dream always ends with a dark-clad figure looming over her. She tries to get away, crawl, run but it is pointless. A sense of dread washes over her as the person gets closer and closer. The girl has no idea who it is but the figure oozes pure darkness. It makes her sick.
Fighting the aching in her bones, Rey listens closely. She can hear engine noise and a couple of whispering voices. They are getting closer so Rey ignores the throbbing in her head and soundlessly slips from under her blanket. Bebe is already awake. It is growling quietly, looking at the door.
The girl is aware why the men outside are here. She could leave Finn, should leave him, but she cannot do it.
He is lying on his side, his back to her. His chest rises steadily, soft snores are coming out of his mouth. Rey envies him. The man looks so peaceful.
She almost feels bad when she shakes his shoulder forcefully. He stirs awake, snapping back to reality abruptly. The man looks at her, confused, wanting to say something but Rey puts a finger to her chapped lips.
The voices are really close now. If they make a run for the back door, they may be able to flee with her truck.
Rey puts on her boots without tying the laces and Finn grabs his jacket. They manage to get to the door and slip outside, unnoticed. The Rebel is already by her truck, trying to remove the mat covering the car as quietly as possible. The girl is standing still in the doorway. She is looking at the place she has spent almost all of her life in with a beating heart. Even though she should be fleeing from the Troopers, even though she is in danger, Rey is unable to take a single step.
She remembers what the hut looked like when she first saw it. It was a barely standing straight shanty, surrounded by piles of trash and hyenas. The girl found it after the orphanage had been officially closed. Dozens of children lost the roof under their heads, forcing them to fend for themselves in the cruel desert. Rey was one of them. Eventually, she stumbled upon Unkar Plutt and was able to make the small house seem even tiniest bit homely.
To the left, there is the cot she has been sleeping on for years now. It consists of a dirty old mattress, a flimsy pillow and a scratchy blanket. Whenever she woke up, she would shiver from the sharp pain prickling her spine and wipe her wet cheeks. The wall over it has marks scratched onto its surface, thousand tiny lines adorning the wood. On the other side, there is the eating space where she would consume her portions. There is also the bathroom, or rather just a metal basin next to a rack. Under the wood panels lies the box with the portions she has been so conservatively using. All of the trinkets she has found so far are placed on small shelves and crates, including her doll made from rags and the spinebarrel flower. It is Finn's voice that tears her away from the memories.
"Rey!" he whispers her name, waving. Bebe is by his side.
No longer caring about being quiet, the scavenger spins around and starts to run. She is able to spot one of the troopers rounding up the corner out of the corner of her eye. She jumps into the car and immediately starts up the engine. The noise causes both troopers to run over with their weapons drawn and start shooting at the scavenger and rebel. A few of the bullets hit the truck. The back window shatters, sending glass shards flying all over the seat. Some of them graze Rey's neck and shoulders. She stomps her foot on the gas pedal, barely giving Finn any time to settle in his seat, but the old vehicle protests by making a loud whirring sound. Eventually, they take off, leaving a vail of dust behind them. The black SUV soon appears in the rear-view mirror.
"Can't this thing go a little faster?!"
"It's a 40-year-old pick-up!"
The troopers are still shooting at them. A couple of the bullets brush the sides of the truck. Rey grips the steering wheel tightly and with a single glance to the right, she jerks it violently, forcing the car to take a sharp turn. Finn grunts as they are thrown around. They are off the path now, driving on the rocky soil.
They are approaching Niima Outpost. Its shabby structures are standing out against the pale sky. It is still early so the area is pretty much empty. A few scavengers are standing in the line to Unkar Plutt and sitting in the cleaning stations, scrubbing their parts. Only the ones who have huge debts are up this early.
Rey is forced to halt when the engine groans, giving up completely. It has lasted way longer than expected, anyway. The SUV is getting closer and closer and the girl looks around, panicked. They have nowhere to run. There are only desert lowlands before them, the nearest settlement is hundreds of miles away from Jakku.
"What's going on?"
"I think the engine is done."
It turns out Rey is right. When she gets out of the truck, she notices a dark trail that has been left by the oil seeping from one of the holes caused by the troopers. She immediately spots an almost brand new vehicle. It looks like one of the ones used by the New Order peacekeepers. It has thick tyres and what seems like armour plates attached to the sides.
"There!" the girl points with her finger. "We can take that one!"
Suddenly, the vehicle is engulfed in crimson flames. The explosion is so huge that it sends Rey and Finn at least a few feet backwards. The girl lands on her back and hits her head on the ground. Her ears are ringing thanks to the impact of her fall. She coughs, trying to get rid of the smoke and dust from her lungs. Panic takes over her body and mind.
Out of nowhere, the girl feels pressure on her right arm. Finns kneels by her side with concern painted all over his battered face. Blood is seeping out of the wound on his upper arm, staining the leather jacket he is wearing.
"Rey, are you alright?" The man's voice echoes in her head painfully.
The girl's heart skips a bit at his words. She is not used to someone being concerned for her well-being. She has been alone ever since she was left in Jakku. Trust is not a virtue known to the dwellers of the desert town. Only the hopeless and naive fall for the illusion of compassion, leading to their tragic demise.
Rey is pulled to her feet by Finn and they start running right away, dodging bullets. The rebel is holding onto her hand the whole time.
"How about that one?" he asks. They are moving toward a lorry standing to the side.
"It's garbage!" She hears another bullet hit the ground. "But it'll do!"
The scavenger dives under the dashboard and yanks the plastic cover with her small knife. The old models' security measures are nearly nonexistent. She is thankful for that. Under different circumstances, she might have been electrocuted before even touching anything. She has seen this happen before.
The cover comes off easily. The girl grabs the cables to rip them out of the small compartment under the steering wheel. Her teeth sink into the plastic over the cables.
"Please, tell me it's working!" Finn's panicked voice calls out.
Her shaky hands bind the wires of the battery and ignition. The dash light up right away and so do the headlamps. The engine starts up with a loud rattle after she has touched the tangled wires with the green one. The girl then revs the engine a few times. She cranks the wheel hard to the side, trying to twist it free and resulting in breaking the steering lock. Again, it would not be as easy with a newer model. The scavenger stomping on the gas pedal causes the lorry to finally move forward.
The most surprising thing is, that the troopers stop firing at them. Rey looks in the quarter glass and realises they are not following them either. Even though she should be feeling nothing but relief, but something close to dread clogs up her throat. On the other hand, Finn does not appear to feel the same way as the scavenger. He lets out a strangled laugh, which earns him a glare from the girl.
Soon, they are passing by canyons, wreckages and abandoned homes. Rey is not sure how long she has been driving, but she can feel the symptoms of fatigue now. The girl has not eaten or drunk since last evening, her whole body is sore from the blast earlier and the heat is unbearable. Sweat is dripping down her face so she has to blink rapidly.
The last thing Rey sees before she falls unconscious is the sun setting down.